Funding Period Research Articles

Sustainability Assessment of Community-Based Poverty Reduction Projects (CPRP) in Nigeria

Community-based development projects have become an important mechanism for channeling development assistance that involves beneficiaries in the design, implementation, and management of community development projects towards improving their living standards. Many evaluation studies have reported improvements and successes with the adoption of the community-based development strategy. However, it has been contended that most community-based development projects have sustainability problems after the withdrawal of the funding agencies. This article focuses on assessing the sustainability of a Community-based Poverty Reduction Project (CPRP) in Kebbi state, Nigeria using a framework of monitoring indicators to measure various dimensions of sustainability of the project The findings of the study revealed that while the initiative has recorded huge successes regarding project outputs during the funding period, the project’s outcomes could not be sustained after the withdrawal of the funding agency. Most of the outputs have problems in different dimensions of sustainability. The authors argue that although many factors contribute to the lack of project sustainability, a key factor is careful planning and implementation. The authors recommend that the design and implementation of the CPRP should focus on economic, community and environmental aspects of sustainability.

FEBio: History and Advances.

The principal goal of the FEBio project is to provide an advanced finite element tool for the biomechanics and biophysics communities that allows researchers to model mechanics, transport, and electrokinetic phenomena for biological systems accurately and efficiently. In addition, because FEBio is geared toward the research community, the code is designed such that new features can be added easily, thus making it an ideal tool for testing novel computational methods. Finally, because the success of a code is determined by its user base, integral goals of the FEBio project have been to offer support and outreach to our community; to provide mechanisms for dissemination of results, models, and data; and to encourage interaction between users. This review presents the history of the FEBio project, from its initial developments through its current funding period. We also present a glimpse into the future of FEBio.

Impact and effectiveness of childhood varicella vaccine program in Queensland, Australia

BackgroundIn November 2005, Australia introduced a publicly funded single dose of varicella vaccine for children aged 18-months. We describe the impact of this program on varicella hospitalisations in Queensland and provide the first assessment of single-dose varicella vaccine effectiveness in Australia since the program commenced. MethodsAge-standardised varicella hospitalisation rates were calculated for 2000–2014 and pre- and post-public funding period rates compared. Case-control studies were conducted to investigate the association between vaccine receipt and both varicella hospitalisations and uncomplicated varicella emergency department presentations. Cases were matched to controls from a population-based register by date of birth and state of residence. Vaccine effectiveness was calculated as (1–odds ratio)×100%. ResultsCompared to the pre-funded period (2000–2003), age-standardised varicella hospitalisation rates declined by more than 70% in 2011–2014 with varicella principal diagnosis rates declining from 5.7 to 1.6 per 100,000 population per year. Varicella vaccine effectiveness at preventing hospitalisation with a principal diagnosis of varicella among children aged 19-months to 6-years was 81.9% (95% confidence interval: 61.8–91.4%), while for emergency department presentations among children aged 19-months to 8-years it was 57.9% (95% confidence interval: 48.5–65.5%). ConclusionsIn Australia, the single-dose varicella vaccination program has substantially reduced varicella morbidity. The single-dose varicella vaccine schedule is moderately-to-highly effective against hospitalisation, but appears less effective against emergency department presentations.

Pat Manson: a multifaceted career devoted to supporting research in the fields of information and education

Two of Pat Manson’s long-standing colleagues give a summary of her wide-ranging career from her early days in library technology development, through the heady period of European funding for library innovation and latterly into broader issues of communication, learning and internet policies.

The role of the European Structural and Investment Funds in Financing Health System in Lithuania: Experience from 2007 to 2013 funding period and implications for the future

European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) are a major source of investments in the newer EU member states. In Lithuania’s health sector, the amount for the 2007–2013 funding period reached more than €400 million. In this paper we aim to (i) identify the key areas in the health sector which were supported by ESIF, (ii) determine the extent to which ESIF assisted the implementation of the ongoing health system reform; and (iii) assess whether the use of funds has led to expected improvements in healthcare. We review the national strategic documents and legislation, and perform calculations to determine funding allocations by specific area, based on the available data. We analyse changes according to a set of selected indicators. We find that implementation of programmes funded by the ESIF lacks formal evaluation. Existing evidence suggests that some improvement has been achieved by 2013. However, there are persisting challenges, including failure to reach a broad agreement on selection of health and healthcare indicators, lack of transparency in allocations, and absence of coherent assessment measures of healthcare quality and accessibility.

Dynamics of Investor Communication in Equity Crowdfunding

In crowdfunding, start-ups can voluntarily communicate with their investors by posting updates. We investigate whether start-ups strategically use updates, which were previously shown to increase investments. To this end, we use hand-collected data of 751 updates and 39,036 investment decisions from the two major German equity crowdfunding portals Seedmatch and Companisto. We find evidence for strategic communication behavior of startups during an equity crowdfunding campaign. During the funding period, start-ups post updates with linguistic devices that enhance the group identity and the group cohesion. Furthermore, the probability of an update during the funding period increases with a strong competition of other contemporary crowdfunding campaigns.

Effect of the different 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccination uptakes on the invasive pneumococcal disease in children: Analysis of a hospital-based and population-based surveillance study in Madrid, Spain, 2007-2015.

In the Community of Madrid, the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) replaced the 7-valent (PCV7) in the fully government-funded Regional Immunization Program (RIP) in May, 2010, but was later excluded in May, 2012, and included again in January, 2015. These unique changes allowed us to assess the impact of the different pneumococcal vaccination policies on PCV13 uptake in infants and on the incidence rate (IR) of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in children <15 years old. In this prospective, active, surveillance study, we estimated PCV13 uptakes, IR and incidence rate ratios (IRR) for total IPD and for IPD caused by PCV13- and non-PCV13 serotypes in children <15 years, stratified by age, in four periods with different vaccination policies: fully government-funded PCV7 vaccination, fully government-funded PCV13, mixed public/private funding and only private funding. Vaccine uptakes reached 95% in periods with public-funded pneumococcal vaccination, but fell to 67% in the private funding period. Overall, IR of IPD decreased by 68% (p<0.001) in 2014–15, due to 93% reduction in the IR of PCV13-type IPD (p<0.001) without significant changes in non-PCV13-type IPD. A fully government-funded PCV13 vaccination program lead to high vaccine uptake and dramatic reductions in both overall and PCV13-type IPD IR. When this program was switched to private PCV13 vaccination, there was a fall in vaccine coverage and stagnation in the decline of PCV13-type IPD with data suggesting a weakening of herd immunity.

Patient-Centered Network of Learning Health Systems: Developing a resource for clinical translational research.

The Learning Health System Network clinical data research network includes academic medical centers, health-care systems, public health departments, and health plans, and is designed to facilitate outcomes research, pragmatic trials, comparative effectiveness research, and evaluation of population health interventions. The Learning Health System Network is 1 of 13 clinical data research networks assembled to create, in partnership with 20 patient-powered research networks, a National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network. Herein, we describe the Learning Health System Network as an emerging resource for translational research, providing details on the governance and organizational structure of the network, the key milestones of the current funding period, and challenges and opportunities for collaborative science leveraging the network.

The dynamic and asymmetric herding behavior of US equity fund managers in the stock market

This paper uses monthly data in a Markov-switching cross-sectional absolute deviation (CSAD) model to reveal the existence of dynamic herding behavior by US equity fund managers in the stock market. We observe positive herding effects in different types of funds during recessionary periods, whereas we find evidence of negative herding behavior in most types of funds during expansionary periods. Our results for asymmetric herding indicate that US fund managers exhibit stronger positive herding behavior when the market is decreasing, when the fund size is smaller and when the fund's period of establishment is shorter during a recessionary period. Conversely, a negative herding effect is stronger when the market is rising, when the fund is larger, and when the fund's period of establishment is longer during an expansionary period. The herding behavior of US fund managers is primarily informational during an expansionary period, but significant information-value herding only exists in the following six months.

Identifying and overcoming implementation challenges: Experience of 59 noninstitutional long-term services and support pilot programs in the Veterans Health Administration.

Background:From 2010 to 2013, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) funded a large pilot initiative to implement noninstitutional long-term services and supports (LTSS) programs to support aging Veterans. Our team evaluated implementation of 59 VA noninstitutional LTSS programs.Purpose:The specific objectives of this study are to (a) examine the challenges influencing program implementation comparing active sites that remained open and inactive sites that closed during the funding period and (b) identify ways that active sites overcame the challenges they experienced.Methodology:Key informant semistructured interviews occurred between 2011 and 2013. We conducted 217 telephone interviews over four time points. Content analysis was used to identify emergent themes. The study team met regularly to define each challenge, review all codes, and discuss discrepancies. For each follow-up interview with the sites, the list of established challenges was used as a priori themes. Emergent data were also coded.Results:The challenges affecting implementation included human resources and staffing issues, infrastructure, resources allocation and geography, referrals and marketing, leadership support, and team dynamics and processes. Programs were able to overcome challenges by communicating with team members and other areas in the organization, utilizing information technology solutions, creative use of staff and flexible schedules, and obtaining additional resources.Discussion:This study highlights several common challenges programs can address during the program implementation. The most often mentioned strategy was effective communication. Strategies also targeted several components of the organization including organizational functions and processes (e.g., importance of coordination within a team and across disciplines to provide good care), infrastructure (e.g., information technology and human resources), and program fit with priorities in the organization (e.g., leadership support).Implications:Anticipating potential pitfalls of program implementation for future noninstitutional LTSS programs can improve implementation efficiency and program sustainability. Staff at multiple levels in the organization must fully support noninstitutional LTSS programs to address these challenges.

Obamacare and environmental production efficiency rankings for the 50 U.S. state governments: A Data Envelopment Analysis of health outcomes from environmental factors and state health care expenditures

This paper examines the health performance rankings of the 50U.S.state governments (SGs), and addresses the relationship between SG performance rankings and SG environmental health, economic prosperity, and state health-care policy. We use the data envelopment analysis (DEA) to estimate and compare the relative performance of the 50 SGs in a single measure. Our analyses indicate that new federal mandates, such as, universal or nearly universal health care coverage, and timely resources or lack of them from the federal government, may lead to very different state health performance outcomes. Our analyses also highlight the tradeoffs between given inputs and desired outputs involved in attaining a certain level of health performance efficiency. In particular, they show that limiting harmful exposures by timely investments in prevention is far more cost-effective than subsequent incurrence of health care expenditures in treatment of the affected population. Finally, our findings indicate that a fixed amount of federal funding per capita could lead to different health performance outcomes in different states, depending on the level of efficiency with which the SG operates during the funding period.

Organizational and institutional work in data infrastructures

ABSTRACTThe long‐term sustainability of data archives and other research information infrastructures is a growing concern as stakeholders seek to ensure that resources invested in infrastructure development endure beyond the original project funding period. For this reason, data infrastructure research has gone beyond the technical work of data management, standardization and digital preservation. There is also a growing body of research that looks at the organizational practices and structures of data repositories and infrastructures for the long term and how they shape and reflect technologies, policies, stakeholder needs and priorities, professions and business models.We intend to use this panel to engage the audience in an ongoing conversation about organizational studies, sustainability planning and infrastructure. Panel members will present their research on these topics in different case sites and explore how governance, policies and organizational structures and practices are involved in the maintenance and repair of data infrastructures. We want to know more from the audience about how they are examining policies, business models, governance structures and artifacts in other sites; gaps and needs in research and practice; and next steps for researchers. Some questions of interest: How do repositories define success? How do they make their case for long‐term funding and institutional homes? What scalar issues will arise in the context of even bigger data sources? How do data projects end? We will engage each other and the audience in discussing these questions and concerns.

Beam and spin dynamics in the fast ramping storage ring ELSA: Concepts and measures to increase beam energy, current and polarization

The electron accelerator facility ELSA has been operated for almost 30 years serving nuclear physics experiments investigating the sub-nuclear structure of matter. Within the 12 years funding period of the collaborative research center SFB/TR 16, linearly and circularly polarized photon beams with energies up to more than 3 GeV were successfully delivered to photoproduction experiments. In order to fulfill the increasing demands on beam polarization and intensity, a comprehensive research and upgrade program has been carried out. Beam and spin dynamics have been studied theoretically and experimentally, and sophisticated new devices have been developed and installed. The improvements led to a significant increase of the available beam polarization and intensity. A further increase of beam energy seems feasible with the implementation of superconducting cavities.

Eliminating Disparities in Asthma Care: Identifying Broad Challenges in Quality Improvement.

Racial disparities in asthma care persist in New York State's Medicaid Program. African Americans with asthma experience higher rates of emergency department visits and inpatient hospitalizations, coupled with lower rates of long-term control medication use compared to other racial/ethnic groups. Within this context, and with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the New York State Department of Health designed and implemented the Eliminating Disparities in Asthma Care (EDAC) Collaborative to improve the quality of asthma care delivered in 7 provider sites located in Central Brooklyn, New York. EDAC was a partnership of the New York State Medicaid and Asthma Control Programs, 6 New York City-based managed care plans, and community-based health care providers. Over the 5-year funding period, improvements in documented asthma severity diagnosis and control classification were observed. This article describes the EDAC approach, successes, and challenges.

Temporary Fix or Lasting Solution? Investigating the Longitudinal Impact of Teacher Professional Development on K–2 Science Instruction

AbstractThis study investigated the extent to which a state-funded teacher professional development program designed to improve K–2 science education led to changes that persisted beyond the funding period. The study used a longitudinal, mixed-methods approach and examined persistence of changes in teachers’ content knowledge, self-efficacy, instructional time, and instructional practices in science. It also examined the extent to which school contexts and resources provided ongoing support for teachers to implement what they learned in the professional development. Data sources, collected over a 5-year period, included a teacher survey, a self-efficacy assessment, content knowledge tests, interviews, and classroom observations. Findings indicated a beginning pattern of decline during the 2 years after the program ended, but outcomes remained higher than before the professional development. Contextual factors varied widely across schools and influenced, in particular, the amount of time teachers devoted t...

Common data elements and data management: Remedy to cure underpowered preclinical studies

Lack of translation of data obtained in preclinical trials to clinic has kindled researchers to develop new methodologies to increase the power and reproducibility of preclinical studies. One approach relates to harmonization of data collection and analysis, and has been used for a long time in clinical studies testing anti-seizure drugs. EPITARGET is a European Union FP7-funded research consortium composed of 18 partners from 9 countries. Its main research objective is to identify biomarkers and develop treatments for epileptogenesis. As the first step of harmonization of procedures between laboratories, EPITARGET established working groups for designing project-tailored common data elements (CDEs) and case report forms (CRFs) to be used in data collection and analysis. Eight major modules of CRFs were developed, presenting >1000 data points for each animal. EPITARGET presents the first single-project effort for harmonization of preclinical data collection and analysis in epilepsy research. EPITARGET is also anticipating the future challenges and requirements in a larger-scale preclinical harmonization of epilepsy studies, including training, data management expertise, cost, location, data safety and continuity of data repositories during and after funding period, and incentives motivating for the use of CDEs.

Reshaping Care for Older People: Trends in emergency admissions to hospital during a period of simultaneous interventions in Glasgow City, April 2011–March 2015

This study describes trends in emergency admissions (EAs) in Glasgow City during a period when interventions were designed and implemented, aimed at shifting the balance from institutional to community-based care. Standardised monthly rates of EAs between April 2011 and March 2015 were calculated, for residents of Glasgow City aged 65 years and over. Multilevel zero-inflated Negative Binomial models for EAs nested by datazone were created, adjusting for sex, 5-year age group, area-level deprivation (SIMD quintile), season, month and month squared. Models were also run for EAs by cause, for three causes: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), falls and dementia. The rate of EAs first rose then fell during the study period. When modelled, RRs for month (RR for month 12 relative to month 1 and 95% CI=1.02 (0.99, 1.06)) and month squared (RR=0.999 (0.998, 0.999)) indicated a rise in admissions until February 2012, followed by a fall. Risk of admission was greater for males and increased with increasing age group. The risk of going into hospital for those from SIMD 5 (most affluent) was 0.58 (0.56, 0.59) relative to those from SIMD 1 (most deprived). Socioeconomic inequalities were particularly great for COPD-related admissions, where RR for SIMD 5 was 0.25 (0.23, 0.28) times that of SIMD 1. An interaction term between month and SIMD was not significant for any outcome. For dementia-related EAs there was a suggestion that inequalities may be reducing over time. EAs for those aged 65 years and more reduced during the Change Fund period, with similar relative reductions observed across all deprivation quintiles.

Influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in Australian adults: a systematic review of coverage and factors associated with uptake

BackgroundIn the absence of an adult vaccination register, coverage estimates for influenza and pneumococcal vaccination come from surveys and other data sources.MethodsSystematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining vaccination coverage in Australian adults from 1990 to 2015, focusing on groups funded under the National Immunisation Program, and intervals prior to and following the introduction of universal funding.ResultsTwenty-two studies met the inclusion criteria; 18 used self-report to determine vaccination status. There were 130 unique estimates of coverage extracted. Among adults aged ≥65y, during the period of universal funding (1999-onwards), the summary estimate of annual influenza vaccination coverage from 27 point estimates was 74.8 % (95 % CI 73.4–76.2 %; range 63.9–82.4 %); prior to this period (1992–1998) from 10 point estimates it was 61.3 % (95 % CI 58.0–64.6 %; range 44.3–71.3 %). For the period of universal funding for pneumococcal vaccination (2005-onwards) the summary estimate for coverage was 56.0 % (95 % CI 53.2–58.8 %; range 51.2–72.8 %, 10 point estimates); prior to 2005 it was 35.4 % (95 % CI 18.8–52.0 %; range 15.4–45.2 %). Coverage for both vaccines was significantly higher following the introduction of universal funding. Influenza vaccination coverage in those aged 18–65 years with a medical indication was lower but data were not combined. Seven studies reported on Aboriginal Australians with three studies reporting five coverage estimates for influenza vaccination in adults ≥65 years (range 71 % - 89 %).ConclusionsAdult influenza and pneumococcal vaccination coverage has increased since the introduction of universal funding, but remains sub-optimal, with pneumococcal coverage lower than influenza. Implications: This review highlights the need for more coverage data overall and in high risk groups, to support public health programs to improve coverage.

Promoting physical activity interventions in communities with poor health and socio-economic profiles: A process evaluation of the implementation of a new walking group scheme

Walking groups have known health benefits but may not operate in communities with the greatest health needs, leading to the potential for increasing health inequity. This study examined the process of implementing a new volunteer led walking group scheme in a deprived community in England with poor physical activity, health and socio-economic indicators. Documentary evidence and semi-structured interviews with stakeholders and volunteer walk leaders undertaken at the beginning and end of the funding period were analysed thematically. It was found that utilising community-based assets, forming collaborative partnerships with health and non-health organisations and ongoing sustainability issues were all factors that affected the scheme's effective implementation. Passive recruitment methods and mass publicity did not attract participants who were representative of their community. The findings firstly suggest the necessity of identifying and mobilising community based assets at the ‘grass roots’ in deprived communities during the preparatory stage to access those in greatest need and to plan and build capacity. Secondly, the findings highlight the key role that health professionals have in referring those in poorest health and the inactive into walking interventions. In the new era of fiscally constrained public health embedded within local authorities these findings are pertinent in supporting the utilisation of local assets to address entrenched physical inactivity and inequity within deprived communities.

Navigating barriers: two-year follow up on recommendations to improve the use of maternal health guidelines in Kosovo.

BackgroundAlthough there are a growing number of initiatives aimed at supporting guideline implementation in resource-constrained settings, few studies assess progress on achieving next steps and goals after the initial activities are completed and the initial funding period has ended. The aim of the current study was to conduct a qualitative process evaluation of progress, barriers, facilitators, and proposed solutions to operationalize nine recommendations to prepare Kosovo to implement the 2012 World Health Organization (WHO) prevention and treatment of postpartum haemorrhage guideline.Methods/DesignIn 2012, we co-created nine recommendations designed to support implementing the WHO’s guideline on the prevention and treatment of postpartum haemorrhage in Kosovo. The current study uses a realist evaluation approach to assess activities and progress two years after the recommendations were developed. The study involved conducting qualitative focus groups and one-on-one interviews with participants from the first meeting to evaluate the activities and progress on the nine recommendations.ResultsForty-three participants provided insights into the barriers and opportunities experienced to date and proposed future directions. Although progress has been made towards implementation of a number of the recommendations, scaling up has been limited by barriers, such as lack of awareness, limited resources, and evaluation challenges. Participants proposed addressing these barriers by building within- and between-country partnerships to facilitate guideline implementation. In addition, participants reported less progress on implementing recommendations related to broader cultural changes, which indicates a need for specific and actionable recommendations to operationalize implementation efforts.ConclusionsIn the two years since the initial meeting, there has been mixed progress on the recommendations. Based on participant feedback, we refined the recommendations so that they can be operationalized by health care system stakeholders in Kosovo to further support implementation efforts. It is beneficial to share these lessons learned throughout the implementation process to inform next steps in Kosovo and offer ideas for use in other settings.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3641-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.